Cowboy Creed (Cooper's Hawke Landing Book 1) Read online

“You can have it back.”

  She threw the shirt and he caught it against his chest. “What are you doing here?”

  “I thought we were passed that. I’m visiting. Is there a fine for that too?” She looked down her nose at him.

  Acid rushed in his blood while desire assaulted his body. They were no longer the same two people. Life had changed for them both. He’d moved on and she couldn’t affect him the same way she once did. “Not unless you’re committing a crime, like burning and putting my town at risk.”

  She giggled and he wasn’t sure what he’d said that was so humorous. “If I remember correctly you sure didn’t have any trouble breaking the law back when we were kids. How many times did you sneak off with Mr. Delaware’s eggs? Or all the times we toilet papered Mr. Hahn’s trees.”

  This was exactly what he’d been trying to tell Livvy. No matter how many years passed, the past always had a way of coming back. This time, it came and smacked him hard across the face. “I’ve grown up since then. We both have.” He allowed his gaze to travel downward on her slender body. What was she now? Thirty-seven? Thirty-eight? She didn’t look a day over thirty, but something in those pensive eyes told him she’d been hurt a time or two which made her wiser. Lord, he understood completely.

  What had she been up to?

  He didn’t need to know. He couldn’t slide back into caring for her—couldn’t let her see the journey he’d traveled to forget her. “So you’re visiting. Does that mean you’ll be leaving soon?” He swiped off his hat and pounded it against his thigh. The temperature had risen, and his clothes felt too tight. It was that damn fire he’d put out. Unfortunately, he still had a blaze inside his body.

  One corner of her lips quirked. “Wow, is this the welcome home party? Cooper’s Hawk has really gone downhill with their welcomes.”

  He chuckled, not allowing her to ruffle his feathers any more than she already had just by seeing her. “I’m sure you’d think so. We’re probably too hillbilly for the likes of someone that drives that Beemer in the driveway. But I see you found those cowgirl shorts.” He narrowed his gaze on the faded denim a little longer than he should have.

  She inhaled deeply. “You don’t know me.”

  “And you don’t know me! Not that it matters. Abide by the law while you’re in town,” he said.

  “As if I’m a law breaker. Are you done threatening me?” Her lips tightened.

  “Sweetheart, I don’t make threats. Don’t think you can waltz back into this town and start stirring up trouble. Times have changed.”

  “Do you call your wife sweetheart too or just those you’ve screwed and forgotten?”

  “My mistake. Maybe I should call you Mrs. Newland,” he growled. Anger swished through his blood like dragon’s breath.

  A flash of awareness washed over her expression but disappeared once the screen door came rattling open.

  “I thought I heard voices out here.” Rusty interrupted the heated battle. He looked from each of them and chuckled. “I see you two are still pickling each other’s gardens. Come inside and have dinner, Creed. Mindy’s making a chicken dish in celebration.”

  Her mouth fell open and some of her tan disappeared. “He can’t stay.”

  “I can’t?” Creed smirked.

  “He can’t?” Rusty muttered.

  “Yeah, I’m sure you’re busy building fences.” Her bottom lip trembled.

  Who did she think she was? In town less than a week and already trying to tell him what to do. The hell with that. “In fact, I do have some time.” He grinned, feeling vindicated when she bared her teeth. Why did it feel so good to see her feathers ruffled?

  She turned on her bare feet and stomped inside, but not before he got another good look at her long legs and firm bottom encased in pocketless denim. He felt his lungs slam into his stomach. Maybe he should leave. Hit the road while the gettin’ was good. He didn’t need the chaos added to his already full plate.

  “Come on, Creed. Let’s get in there before she burns our food out of spite.” Rusty’s laughter mingled with the crickets chirping in the distance.

  Stepping through the doorway, he inhaled savory home cooking and his stomach growled. The Mindy he knew couldn’t boil a pot of water let alone make something delicious.

  Placing his hat on the eagle hook by the door, he swiped his boots off on the spiked welcome rug and glanced over at Mindy who was standing at the stove stirring a pot. It didn’t look like water. Rusty was grabbing beer from the refrigerator.

  “Want one?”

  Yeah, he did. “I’d better have a bottle of water if that’s okay.” Creed reminded himself that he had to be at Livvy’s school later that evening. He didn’t think showing up with alcohol on his breath was a good way to enter the parent teacher conference.

  “How’s your mother?” Rusty handed Creed a water.

  He only caught the last few words of the question because he’d been ogling Mindy who was noisily pounding a wooden spoon against the edge of the pot. She was angry. Whoo-wee. He could feel her anger clear across the room. Well, at least they were both on the same page then. “Huh?”

  “The family? How are they?” Rusty guzzled half the bottle of beer.

  “They’re good. Real good.” He couldn’t actually admit that his daughter was rebelling, and his mother was giving him a hard time about moving on.

  “That’s good to hear. I heard there was a fire over at Carson’s Creek. I bet it was a doozy. Was there any damage to the bridge?”

  “Took us a few hours to contain the blaze but we managed to get it in control.” He stepped over to the sink, scrubbed his hands with soap and water then asked, “Can I help with anything?”

  “Yeah, leave,” she whispered.

  He laughed. “I don’t mind sticking around.” He shook the excess water from his hands and used a paper towel to wipe them dry.

  “Suit yourself, but don’t blame me if I burn your food.” She bent over and took out the casserole dish. “Ouch!” She hurried to set the dish down and tore off the mitt to blow on her finger.

  Every logical part of him screamed for him to stay away, but another part of him urged him to take a step forward. “What’d you do?”

  “It’s nothing.”

  He could see that it was something by the way she was holding her hand. “Let me look.” Taking the initiative, he reached for her hand. The thumping of her fast pulse beat against his thumb. Her nails were short and neat, painted with polish the color of pearl. Her skin was as soft as silk. There was a slash of redness and the starting of a blister on her finger. He heard her hiss of breath at the same time she jerked her hand away.

  “I said I’m fine. Dinner’s ready.”

  “Suit yourself,” he said smartly and joined Rusty at the table. “Did you get that new head of cattle?”

  “Last week.”

  “How about the wood for the new barn?”

  “Wait. What new barn?” Mindy asked as she set the steaming casserole dish in the center of the table.

  “It’s nothing,” Rusty said.

  Feeling her gaze on him, Creed did his best not to look her way. The last thing he wanted was to get in the middle of whatever the father and daughter had going on. Creed wasn’t sure why Rusty was keeping the details of Sage Ranch a secret, but he also understood Mindy hadn’t shown any concern about the land for a long time.

  With an agitated sigh, she went back to the stove and came back with bowls of green beans, cauliflower and rolls then took a seat across from Creed. She shook out a cloth napkin and laid it across her lap. “So you’re working here now?”

  He looked up from his plate and realized she was speaking to him. He glanced over at Rusty and received no help. “A few times a week,” Creed answered, grabbing himself a piece of chicken smothered in vegetables. His mouth salivated. Although he’d grabbed a sandwich earlier, he could still eat.

  “Isn’t that just cozy,” she muttered, pulled off a piece of bread and popped it int
o her mouth, all the while keeping her inquisitive gaze on him.

  “So this is a celebration dinner?” Creed asked around a mouthful of chicken.

  When she didn’t answer, Rusty said, “She’s working at the ice rink. Coaching.”

  “Congratulations.” His heart betrayed his head. Why did he feel elated and angry all at once?

  “It’s temporary,” she pushed out.

  Although the chicken was moist, he had a hard time swallowing and sent it down with a gulp of water. “So you still skate?” He remembered how she’d dedicated every evening to skating. He always loved watching her on ice.

  She didn’t even look at him when she said, “Of course. Is that hard to believe?”

  “I didn’t mean—”

  “Don’t mind her,” Rusty sniffed. “She’s just sour over that bastard husband—”

  “Ex-husband,” she added, blotting the corners of her mouth with the napkin.

  “Ex-husband left her for some teeny bopper.”

  Mindy looked uncomfortable. Her cheeks flushed. “Hardly a teen, Daddy.”

  “Told her not to marry him in the first place but did she ever listen to me?” Rusty groaned and speared a piece of cauliflower, staring at it like it was alien.

  “That’s none of his business.”

  “Yeah, it really isn’t.” Creed could literally see the tension building.

  “It’s time you came back to the ranch. This is your legacy here, Minnow.” Rusty dropped the vegetable back onto his plate. “I won’t live forever.”

  “Daddy, don’t say that. You have plenty of time—”

  “That’s the problem with the younger generation. They think they have all the time in the world. Foolish. You’ll go back to California soon enough.”

  “Maybe you should stop drinking,” she snapped.

  As if this triggered something inside him, his expression changed as he pushed back his chair and stood. “If you’ll excuse me, I have somewhere to be.” He strolled from the kitchen.

  The fork dinged loudly on the plate when Mindy dropped it.

  Her shoulders slumped. “If you’ll excuse me I have somewhere I need to be too.” She stood and dropped her napkin on the table.

  Creed watched her leave the room, feeling his chest tighten. He shouldn’t care, but he did. So her husband—ex-husband—had cheated. Creed couldn’t wrap his head around that truth. Who in their right mind would want another woman when they had Mindy? Who could kiss another pair of lips when they had hers to kiss every day? It was all too difficult to understand.

  He looked across the barely touched feast on the table, shrugged, then spooned up more chicken and green beans. No reason for any of it to go to waste.

  Chapter Five

  MINDY DROPPED THE horse brush into the bucket and stretched her back. She’d been working chores for the last few hours and she’d forgotten how laborious it could be.

  “Hi, Mindy! Good to see you out here.”

  “Mornin’, Bo. I noticed that one of the horses is getting a supplement to her feed. Why is that?”

  “Vet diagnosed her with an ulcer so she’s being supplemented with an edible clay. She’s eating better. Feeling better. Aren’t you girl?” Bo rubbed the neck of the horse.

  “What do you think of Creed Hawke working here?” She watched several expressions flicker across his face.

  “Been here for almost three months now.”

  “I was shocked.” She followed him inside. “Do you mind if I ask if you were hurt? I noticed you’re limping.”

  He grabbed a shovel from the corner. “Don’t mind at all.” He patted his thigh. “I tripped at home over my dog, Susie, and broke my leg. The son-of-a-gun hasn’t healed completely.”

  “I’m glad you’re still here at Sage Ranch.”

  “I won’t be much longer.”

  “Why?” She crossed her arms over her chest. “Is that because Creed is working here?”

  “No, but he’s hiring a few new hands and it’s best this old coot does what he should have done a couple of years ago.”

  “Daddy hired them?” Had she heard wrong?

  “Rusty didn’t hire them. Creed did.” Bo shoveled up dirty straw off the floor and dropped it into the wheel barrel.

  Several seconds floated by as she absorbed what he was saying. “Creed hired them. Why?”

  “Yes, ma’am. Don’t look so astonished, girl. Creed’s a good man. He didn’t push me out. He’s doing some good changes around here.”

  “What’s going on, Bo?” She removed her gloves and laid them on the workbench. She’d suspected from the start that they were all hiding something from her.

  He lifted his gaze from the floor. “Mindy—”

  “Is there something I need to know?”

  He blew out a long breath and shrugged. “I mind my own business and I’d like to keep it that way.” He went back to mucking the stall.

  “We’ve known each other for a long time. What am I missing?”

  He paused in shoveling. “Mindy, you haven’t been here in a long time. Best I can tell you is talk to your Pa.” He turned his back to her, signaling the end of the discussion.

  Realizing the discomfort of the hand, she didn’t pressure him. He wouldn’t give her any information anyway.

  She went in search of her daddy and found him standing in the center of a circle of hands.

  When he saw her, he stopped talking.

  Stepping up to the group of men, they all greeted her with a nod. Her father shifted from one dusty boot to another.

  “Go on and get back to work,” Rusty commanded and the men dispersed.

  “I’d like to speak to you, Daddy.”

  “I’m headed to take care of some business.” He turned and strolled toward his truck parked along the grass.

  She caught up to him as he opened the driver’s door. “Since when did Creed take over the running of this ranch?”

  “What do you mean?” He slid behind the wheel.

  “Hiring hands. Making decisions regarding the livestock. I don’t know a lot about ranching but how does a hand take over unless he’s boss?”

  He narrowed his grey gaze on her. “You’re right, you don’t know much about ranching so stick to what you know.”

  “I know enough that I can sniff out bull crap when I smell it. What’s going on around here that you’re not telling me?”

  “If you were so good with sniffing out bull crap then why didn’t you sniff out that your husband was having an affair? Or that he was a self-absorbed jerk from the very beginning? I’d say you need to worry about your personal life before you start worrying about what’s going on here.”

  “I do have my personal life in order.”

  “Really? Could have fooled me,” he huffed.

  “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  The wrinkles around his eyes and mouth softened some. “Listen, I’m glad you’re here, but I don’t need you to start nagging me about the running of this place. For nineteen years you haven’t cared about Sage Ranch. Are you sure you care now?”

  She took a step away from the door as he started the engine.

  He pulled away and she stood there for the longest time, long after the dust cloud faded. A cold grip held her.

  Mindy had other ways of finding out important information.

  Following the worn path up to the house, she stepped inside and made her way down the hall and into the office, closing the door behind her and locking it. The place was a cluttered mess with stacks of papers and files on the desk, on the chair and an overflowing trash can. Scooping up the pile on the chair, she laid them on the desk and sat down, scooting the chair closer. Most of the paperwork were paid invoices, but at the bottom she found an envelope marked “Deed”.

  Lifting the flap, she took out the thick document and unfolded it, skimming the words, “Deed of sale” “Transferred to Creed Hawke” “Sold”. Her heart sunk. Oh no! What had her father done? Why did he sell the ranch to C
reed?

  How could he do this?

  How could Daddy not tell me?

  Staring at the legal document until her temples ached, anger scoured through her. Why didn’t either one of them mention this? How was this possible? Why would her father sell the land?

  Taking the envelope with her, she stomped outside and got into her car. The tires sent dirt flying as she pressed on the gas pedal and spun out toward the road. Pulling over next to the barn, she waved one of the younger hands over. He shyly stepped up next to the driver’s door, resituating his Stetson at least a dozen times before he finally gave her a smile.

  “Hi there, uh….?”

  “Grady.”

  “I’m Mindy.” She forced a smile on her lips. “Do you know where Creed would be right now? Is he here?”

  “No, ma’am. He’s not here too often. I’d guess he’s at Hawke Landing.”

  “Where would I find Hawke Landing?”

  Grady told her, she thanked him and pulled onto the road. The drive took long enough for her blood to boil even more. She wanted to throttle Creed.

  By the time she walked through the door at Cooper’s Hawke Landing, she had rehearsed a dozen times what she’d say to him. She stomped up to the receptionist desk and the pretty blonde with pale blue eyes behind wide rimmed glasses lifted her gaze from the computer. A millisecond later she smiled. “Mindy Sage? Is that you? Of course it’s you!” The woman stood and reached over the counter to drag Mindy in for a tight hug.

  When she was finally released from toned arms, Mindy scanned the woman’s face and then it struck her… “Willow? Oh my gosh. You look amazing.”

  “I’m fifty pounds lighter. And now a blonde.” She twirled one of the dyed strands around her knuckle.

  “I’m sorry I didn’t recognize you—”

  Willow waved a hand and laughed. “Honey, if you’d have recognized me, I would have been disappointed. I left the shy, timid Willow back in high school where she belonged. Anyway, what brings you to Landing? Do you have an appointment? I don’t remember seeing your name.” She searched through the open planner on her desk. “Hmm. Nope. You’re not on here.”

  “I came to speak to Creed.” She thrummed her fingers on the desk.